This invention is a convertible multi-diameter sleeve for optical fiber connectors to allow optical fiber cables with plug ferrules of different internal and external diameters to be connected with precise core alignment.
Optical fibers are used to transfer communications and data which use the medium of light. An example of the above-mentioned optical fiber cable with a single core (1) is shown in FIG. 5. The optical fiber consists of the fiber core (4), (composed of (2) the core of fibers made of highly pure quartz glass, etc., with different refractive indices, and (3) cladding), and the external sheathing (5) made of nylon and ultraviolet-hardened plastic which covers the fiber core (4).
Optical fiber cables (1) described above are manufactured in various lengths. Fibers are joined together in a semi-permanent bond to produce the length of optical fiber required when the optical fiber cable is laid, but optical fiber connectors which allow easy connection and separation of optical fiber cables are used to connect optical fiber cables and optical devices, and in the construction, maintenance and trials, etc., of optical communications systems.
Optical fiber cables are currently connected by inserting the molded plug ferrules (6) which are attached at the ends of optical fiber cables (1), and which have the same diameter, into each end of a sleeve (7) which has a slot (8) extending along the entire length of the sleeve (thereby giving the sleeve a cross-section shaped like the letter xe2x80x9cCxe2x80x9d), as shown in FIG. 6.
The problem with the C-shaped sleeve is that the outer diameters of the plug ferrules that are inserted at both ends of the sleeve must be identical.
To overcome the above-described problem a convertible multi-diameter sleeve for optical fiber connectors (9), FIG. 7, which can accept plug ferrules with different external diameters was developed so that optical fiber cables can be connected in places where space is limited for installation and set up. This convertible multi-diameter sleeve is molded to have the shape of a cylinder with different diameters (inner and outer) on the left (9b) and the right (9c) of the sleeve (the diameters change at point (9a) in FIG. 7) and the sleeve has a slot (8) which extends along the entire length of the sleeve (thereby giving the sleeve a cross-section shaped like the letter xe2x80x9cCxe2x80x9d).